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Rotting Guts for Dinner © 2014 Vanessa Ravencroft Edith never had been an early riser. She loved sleeping in whenever she could. She was at the edge between dreams and reality between sleep and conciousness. At first she wondered if she had drunk a little too muchm because the bed felt as if it was moving.She slid her arms under the soft pillow and turned to the other side to catch just a few more winks of sleep. But this she was certain the bed did move. She opened her eyes and said . “System what time is it?” “It is Zero Two oh seven, Union Standard or about mid day locally” “Zero Two, no wonder I feel like I just went to bed.” “You did not, Edith The word just indicates a short period of time and in relation to the sleep period requirements of a Terran human you slept 9 hours, without sleep inducer I might add.” “Who needs a stupid machine to sleep? I never needed Sleep inducers.” “Apparently, not.” “You know there is a fine line between being a friendly AI or a sarcastic one, I think you crossed it long ago.” “Yes that would be a fair assesment, but Commander McLane uploaded this personality simulation. I am not sentient, a requirement to develop character traits such as sacrcasm.” Edith waved at the view port and the polarization changed and mate it transparent to light. A drepressing land scape in every shade of gray was pounded by torrential rain form equally gray shaded clouds that covered the sky from horizon to horizon. This was of course the explanation of the moving sensation. She was aboard a massive Union Science Corps crawler, and part of a detailed planetary survey mission. After a visit to the hygene cell and a quick shower, she wondered why this rolling bebehmoth could not also have an auto dresser. She was certain if that thing would have been fleet,it would have the most advanced model. After she dressed in the maroon colored coverall that was the color of the Science Corps, Explorer division and gave her brown shoulderlong tresses a last brush, teasing the last unruly strand in place; she went to the Control Deck. Commander McLane, a slanky human form Mars rested in the central command seat, while Yor, a massive purple Nul was sitting behind the drive controls. Mc Lane turned and grinned. “Ah, Dr. King. Welcome among the living.If we would be Union Fleet m you'd face a courtmartial for getting up three hours after your shift started.” “If this would be Fleet we have Auto Dressers.” “We should be happy, the Army gave us these old siege engines. Sure beats slushing across the surface of this muddy continent and sleeping in Erecto tents.” “I have done this many times before, this isn't my first planet.” “Liar, this is your second planetary survey and the last planet was as pleasant as Para Para.” “Well I did sleep in a tent.” She sat down behind the Life science station and gave the beautiful Delicate thankful nod as the beauty from the far end of the Large Magellanic Cloud handed her a mug of fresh coffee. “Thank you Auero, that is just what I needed. Teaches me to get into adrinking contest with a Nul. But how did you survive our drinking binge, looking fresh and beautiful as ever?” “We Delicates only have external similarites to humans, we are completley immune to alcohol.” “Unlike we Nul. “ grunted the fearsome giant behind the control. We have an open circulation and Alcohol does things to us, I thought not possible.” Edith checked her read outs and said. “There is a spike on the Neuro activity sensors. Our orbital scanner eye has picked up the neural electric activities of significantly active brains about 189 kimometes from our current position.” Yor at the controls pushed the control stick into the new direction,indicated by the coordinates Edith had just send to his read out. The 70 meter long , twenty meter high and twenty meter wide, vehicle riding on four very wide all terrain tracks made of molecule compacted Ultronits slowly turned into the new direction. Of course this former Union Army Planetary Siege engine could travel at speeds of up to 100 kilometers over virtually any known terrain and under almost any enivironment, doing so would not only scare any life from for a hundred mile radius to death or sent it fleeing, it would tear a furrough of apocalyptical proportions into the planets surface and kill and destroy anything in its path. The land scape changing artillery and most of the secondary weapon systems had been removed, leaving ample space for spaceous labs and living quarters. Making a detailed planet survey a pleasant affair. This Little Joe Class Siege Engine was one of the small Artillery command versions. Edith had never seen one but knew the Army had Siege Engines where 4 Little Johns could be taken aboard. This repurposed war machine now sported the same maroon red a everything of the Explorer division and rumbled with a leisurely pace of 15 klicks across the seemingly endless Tundra of the big contient of this Class 2A Gardenworld. It had been entered as planet Kevin Yan into Union catalogs eight month ago when it was discovered during a physical survey of Brekonis Zeta, a main sequence star with an nine planet system. Physical surveys in this region of the Spinward sector had only recently been increased, mainly due of course to the fall of the Kermac and the Galactic Council. Now Union explorers could go the direct route reaching the this quadrant, instead of going the long route. One reason of the increased survey activity was of course the discovery of the Ancient Gate Network and the likely assumption that there were gates on this side of the M-0 Galaxy as well. Project Providence and the Zpoint stations had also started to map this region more closely. Despite the fact that the Union colonized pretty much every piece of celestial real estate, Gardenworlds were considered rare treasures. But before BoCA would offer this world to potential colonists, a detailed survey had to be conducted. Close examination of the local bio sphere, analyzing the soil , water and air to make sure there weren't any nasty suprises in terms of microbes or other micro organisms. Of course the survey was also looking for sentient life, or the remnants of a vanished civilization. For this reason two Little Joes had been deployed from the USS Ghana, a massive 5000 meter HALD explorer of the Science Corps. Of course a survey could have been done from orbit. Union Sensor were quite sophistcated and legions of Survey robots roamed the galaxy measuring and surveying every star and stellar object. However by Assembly decision these robot probes were prohibited from making first contact or make a detailed pre colonly assessment survey. Edith sipped at her coffee and stared past the view ports. A huge lake was ahead. The shores where white with flocks of millions of large birds. Of course the lake was no obstacle for the massive machine., if the water was deep enough it would float, To the tall Delicate she said. “Have you decided what you will do after your 22 month are up? Will you extend or perhaps even consider a career in the Science Corps?” “Yes I have, I am applying with the Academy, I want to become a science officer for the fleet.” “Science Corps not enough exictement for you?” “I hope I will eventually and many years from now, picked as Captain for a HALD. That is my declared goal.” Commander McClane shifted in his seat. “Tall goal but a worthy one that's for sure.” .Just as the Crawler reached the shore, they saw watched a compact and very musucular creature with impressive fangs and claws killed what appeared an elephantsized herbivore. Edith said. “I guess nature displays the same cruelty no matter what world or planet.” The Nul said. “Nature is not cruel, that carnivore kills to survive and feed. It won't kill for fun or just because it can. Sentient beings on the other hand can be cruel.” The Delicate pointed into the opposite direction. “I guess there had been more kills today. I see a cadaver over there, and some kind of scavenger. I am not very strong in my psionic abilities as other Delicates, but I am almost certain I am detecting structured thought.” Commander McLane got up. “Yor, hit the breaks. Aureo hail the ship and inform mission control that we have a potential Cognito.” He.like almost everyone in raised his eyes to the ceiling to address the invisible but always present AI. “System Suvery Log access.” “Survey Log recording.” “At Zero Four fifty eight, Mobile survey group four detected a potential Cognito contact. Extra Vehicular observation commencing.” He smiled. “Dr. King you are with me, put on your All Terrains and meet me at aft boarding ramp access.” – Edith almost threw up, as the boarding ramp lowered and the planets air rushed in. Instead of cool moist air as she somehow expected, a stomach turning stench of rotting flesh and feces hit the olfactory receptors of her nose. She hastily activated the folding helmet that was standard equiment and stored as an insubsantial film in the collar of her explorer suit. It was too late and a bad idea . She threw up after all. Now this was not the self cleaning helm of a space suit, but just a back up, and she got a good close up of her last dinner. Commander McLane also fighting with a storng gag reflex said. “ Category:Fragments